Abstract
Asian Indian (AI) immigrants, the second largest immigrant group in the US, have a high prevalence of abdominal obesity and premature cardiovascular disease (CVD).1,2,3 Despite ample epidemiological evidence of the need to reduce CVD risk in AIs, few published interventions have addressed this population, primarily focusing on dietary measures and promotion of physical activity, and none of these address immigrant AIs.4,5
This study was built upon the results of our prior work to 1) Implement and pilot test a peer leader-facilitated 10-week dyadic intervention (Community Health among Asian Indian immigrants (CHAI) Dyad study) using a cluster randomization design, to decrease CVD risk among first generation AI immigrants; and 2) Assess the feasibility/acceptability of a full-scale intervention. Twenty marital dyads from the the intervention site received the 10- week peer leader-facilitated dyadic intervention, while 20 dyads from the “usual care” control group site received a basic cardiovascular lifestyle modification program. Both groups met weekly (90 min. classes) for 10 weeks in a hybrid format. The intervention was designed to address factors that we identified in our previous study as contributing to a syndemic of cardiovascular disease among AI immigrants including acculturation stress, family history and genetic risk, physical inactivity, lack of community engagement/social support, as well as a high fat, high-carbohydrate, high-calorie diet.
We plan to assess the impact of the CHAI Dyad Study on acculturation stress, perceived community support, BMI and waist circumference, Hemoglobin A1c, lipid panel, c-reactive protein, salivary cortisol, 10 year risk of CVD (QRISK3), physical activity and dietary intake. Data analysis is currently underway.
Notes
Funding Information:
Rutgers-NYU Center for Asian Health Promotion and Equity under National Institutes of Health/National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIH/NIMHD) Grant 1P50MD017356-01.
References:
1. Nguyen, K.T., Li, J., Peng, A. W., Azar, K., Heidenreich, P., Palaniappan, L., & Yong, C. M. (2024). Temporal Trends in Cardiovascular Disease Prevalence Among Asian American Subgroups. Journal of the American Heart Association, 13(8), e031444. https://doi.org/10.1161/JAHA.123.031444
2.Gupta, K., Modi, S. & Ananthasubramaniam, K. (2022) Toward Understanding Cardiovascular Risk Burden in South Asians. JACC: Asia. 2 (7) 912–915. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacasi.2022.10.005
3. Kanaya, A. M., Kandula, N., Herrington, D., Budoff, M. J., Hulley, S., Vittinghoff, E., & Liu, K. (2013). Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) study: objectives, methods, and cohort description. Clinical cardiology, 36(12), 713–720. https://doi.org/10.1002/clc.22219
4.Limbachia, J., Ajmeri, M., Keating, B. J., de Souza, R. J., & Anand, S. S. (2022). Effects of lifestyle interventions on cardiovascular risk factors in South Asians: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ open, 12(12), e059666. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-059666
5. Mobarki, A., D’Alonzo, K.T., Mathur, S. Joseph, M., Wadhawan, A., & Holly, C. (2025). A scoping review protocol of interventions to lower the risk of CVD among Asian Indian immigrants. BMJ Open. http://bmjopen.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/bmjopen-2025-100339?ijkey=XohQJlbg6i7OxiP&keytype=ref
Sigma Membership
Alpha Tau
Type
Poster
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Pilot/Exploratory Study
Keywords:
Health Equity or Social Determinants of Health, Public and Community Health, Testing Strategies, Immigrants, Indians (Asians), Health, Public Health, Community Health Services
Recommended Citation
Joseph, Maya; Wadhawan, Anju; Mathur, Shailja; Lin, Haiqun; and D'Alonzo, Karen T., "Effects of the “CHAI for 2” Pilot Intervention Among Asian Indian Immigrants" (2026). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 103.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2026/posters_2026/103
Conference Name
37th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Conference Year
2026
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-09-15
Effects of the “CHAI for 2” Pilot Intervention Among Asian Indian Immigrants
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Asian Indian (AI) immigrants, the second largest immigrant group in the US, have a high prevalence of abdominal obesity and premature cardiovascular disease (CVD).1,2,3 Despite ample epidemiological evidence of the need to reduce CVD risk in AIs, few published interventions have addressed this population, primarily focusing on dietary measures and promotion of physical activity, and none of these address immigrant AIs.4,5
This study was built upon the results of our prior work to 1) Implement and pilot test a peer leader-facilitated 10-week dyadic intervention (Community Health among Asian Indian immigrants (CHAI) Dyad study) using a cluster randomization design, to decrease CVD risk among first generation AI immigrants; and 2) Assess the feasibility/acceptability of a full-scale intervention. Twenty marital dyads from the the intervention site received the 10- week peer leader-facilitated dyadic intervention, while 20 dyads from the “usual care” control group site received a basic cardiovascular lifestyle modification program. Both groups met weekly (90 min. classes) for 10 weeks in a hybrid format. The intervention was designed to address factors that we identified in our previous study as contributing to a syndemic of cardiovascular disease among AI immigrants including acculturation stress, family history and genetic risk, physical inactivity, lack of community engagement/social support, as well as a high fat, high-carbohydrate, high-calorie diet.
We plan to assess the impact of the CHAI Dyad Study on acculturation stress, perceived community support, BMI and waist circumference, Hemoglobin A1c, lipid panel, c-reactive protein, salivary cortisol, 10 year risk of CVD (QRISK3), physical activity and dietary intake. Data analysis is currently underway.
Description
This study was built upon the results of our prior work to 1) Implement and pilot test a peer leader-facilitated 10-week dyadic intervention (Community Health among Asian Indian immigrants (CHAI) Dyad study) using a cluster randomization design, to decrease CVD risk among first generation AI immigrants; and 2) Assess the feasibility/acceptability of a full-scale intervention. Data analysis is currently underway.